The Best Duvets in Canada

Duvets are a versatile type of bedding – there are ones made for cooling in the summer as well as ones made for retaining heat during cold Canadian winters. Plus, if you like changing up the décor in your bedroom often, the removable covers used with duvets make it easy to coordinate your bed with the rest of your room. 

As with most items these days, there are countless duvets available to choose from. If you don’t have the patience to sort through a mountain of bedding options and duvet reviews, not to worry. We’ve compiled a list of the best available duvets in this post, whether you’re someone who runs warm in their sleep or someone looking for a cozy, ultra warm cover. 

Here are a few tips to keep in mind when you’re choosing between different duvets: 

• Size – As with any other type of bedding, make sure the measurements of your duvet are suitable for your mattress. You can look below in our frequently asked questions section to see common sizes of duvets and what bed sizes they are most suitable for. 
• Inner fill type – Different types of fill material have different properties. For example, down is particularly excellent for keeping you warm. It’s important to note that feathers and down are different – feathers don’t insulate as well as down does and as such, down will be more expensive. Additionally, there are duvets filled with synthetic materials such as polyester or rayon, which are hypoallergenic and less heavy than down, or feather filled duvets. Cotton or wool filled duvets are also available as a more affordable option. Always be sure to read the label on your duvet carefully – some duvets are only partially down filled, as little as 30%, with cheaper materials making up the rest of the fill. 

• Fill power – This refers to the ‘fluffiness’ of the down or the space that one ounce of down occupies in your duvet. Higher quality down has high fill power and is more insulating. Here is a list of fill powers and what situations they’re suited for: 
  • 400 or below: Summer use or for hot sleepers. 
  • 400 to 600: Good for general use year-round. 
  • 600 – 800: Good for winter use. 
  • 800 and up: Good for extra cold days or for cold sleepers. 

• Stitching – You don’t have to be a sewing expert to have a look at the type of stitches a duvet has. Generally, there are two main types of stitching used in duvets – either box stitching or baffle box stitching. Baffle box stitching allows for a larger amount of filling than box stitching and a fluffier duvet overall, but box stitching will be sufficient for duvets with less fill power. Plus, duvets will box stitching will tend to run cooler, which makes them great for people prone to overheating in their sleep. 

In order to create this guide, we examined and compiled information from customer reviews on sites such as Amazon and the Bay, in addition to comparing and contrasting information from trusted consumer resources such as The Spruce and HGTV.  

Our goal as a Canadian review website is to help consumers find products available in the Canadian market suitable for various different individual needs and price points. 

What is a duvet? 

Duvets are a type of bedding that is designed to go inside a duvet cover and are often the outermost layer on a bed.  

What are the most common duvet sizes? 

Below are a list of common duvet dimensions and what bed sizes they work best for: 

Standard Twin Duvet – 64” x 89”/ 135 cm x 200 cm, recommended for twin beds and twin XL beds. 

Standard Double Duvet – 80” x 89”/ 200 cm x 200 cm, recommended for double or full beds. 

Standard Queen Duvet – 88” x 90”/225 cm x 230 cm, recommended for queen beds. 

Standard King Duvet – 102” x 90”/260 cm x 230 cm, recommended for king beds. 

What’s the difference between an eiderdown and regular down? 

According to an article by Icelandic Down, eiderdown comes from a specific type of duck called the common Eider that breeds in the Arctic. As such, eiderdown is particularly warming. It also doesn’t contain, giving it better insulating and durability properties. Additionally, the Eider birds are not plucked – rather the down is taken from nests or when the ducks naturally shed it. 

Conversely, regular down can come from any species of duck or goose and may or may not be ethically collected. 

Comforter vs duvet: What’s the difference? 

Essentially, duvets are made to be used inside of a cover while comforters can be used as is without a cover. Duvets also tend to be fluffier than comforters, though that isn’t always the case. 

What are the most common types of duvet filling? 

Typically, you’ll find down, wool, polyester, or synthetic materials inside a duvet.  

How to wash a duvet? 

Most of the time, you’ll just need to clean your duvet’s cover once a week or once every two weeks. Still, it doesn’t hurt to wash your duvet every 6 months to a year, or spot cleaning it as needed in case you spill something that soaks through your duvet cover. Below is advice for washing both your duvet and duvet cover. 

Washing a duvet cover: 

• Check for a tag that instructs you how to clean the cover. If that’s not available, wash it in cold water and in the gentle setting of your washing machine. Dry on the lowest heat setting available for your drying machine. 

Washing a duvet: 

• Spot cleaning – If your duvet contains down, shift the down away from the area to be cleaned. Use a mild soap or spot remover of your choice on the stain and gently rub it onto the stain. Rinse the area well with cool water while avoiding getting any down wet as much as possible. Dry with a blow dryer or in your dryer on the air fluff setting. 

• Washing the whole duvet – There’s a few options here – to avoid any complications and damage to your duvet, getting it professionally laundered is an option, although it may be somewhat pricy. If your laundry machine won’t fit your duvet without it being folded and crumpled, consider taking it over to a laundromat to have access to larger machines. Either way, you can follow the steps below (as shown by The Spruce) to clean your duvet. 

• Make sure to separate your duvet and duvet cover. Then, load your duvet into your washer without crumpling it and making sure to spread it out as evenly as possible. 
• Next, place 2 clean tied up socks with a tennis ball inside each one inside the washer. These will help provide extra agitation to rid your duvet of any grease, oil, and dirt it’s accumulated. 
• Add in about half the laundry detergent you would add for a regular load. This is to prevent your duvet from becoming stiff. 

• Set your washer to the gentlest setting it has and select the warm water option. If possible, set your machine up for an extended rinse cycle to ensure that any detergent is thoroughly rinsed out. 
• Run your laundry machine. 
• Check your duvet for any left-over detergent residue – if needed, you can run your duvet through another rinse cycle. 
• Gently remove your duvet from the washer, being careful not to rip it. In particular, down filled comforters may have a slight odor when wet. However, this smell dissipates once your duvet dries out. 
• Place your duvet in your dryer, spreading it out as evenly as possible. Add your tennis ball socks in as well, so that your duvet doesn’t clump up. 

• Start your dryer on the lowest heat setting. 
• About every half hour or so, take out your duvet and fluff it up to distribute the filling/down inside so that it doesn’t clump up in one place. 
• Continue drying your duvet in your dryer until completely dry. 
• Optional: Hanging your duvet out on a clothesline in the sun can help finish the drying process faster – additionally, the sun can help brighten your duvet. 

Where to buy duvets? 

Generally, you’ll be able to find duvets wherever you buy other bedroom related items such as bed frames, mattresses, pillows, or sheets. Examples include the Bay, Crate and Barrel, IKEA, Pottery Barn, Sleep Country, and Amazon, among others.